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Ab initio equation of state of hydrogen for inertial fusion applications
M.A. Morales, L.X. Benedict, D.S. Clark, E. Schwegler, I. Tamblyn, S.A. Bonev, A.A. Correa, S.W. Haan High Energy Density Physics, 8, 1, 5-12 (2011) This work presents ab initio electronic structure calculations, including density functional theory molecular dynamics and coupled electron-ion quantum Monte Carlo, to determine the equation of state of hydrogen in the pressure-temperature regime relevant for simulating the initial phase of inertial confinement fusion capsule implosions. The computed equation of state is found to be in close agreement with the most recent SESAME table constructed by Kerley in 2003, and a simple density-dependent but temperature-independent correction brings the Kerley equation of state into excellent agreement with the ab initio results in the chosen region of the hydrogen phase diagram. These findings provide improved thermodynamic descriptions of hydrogen fuel critical for accurate modeling of fusion capsule performance. |
